Improved harness-buckle



NITE, STAT S ,ATENT' ()FFICEe MARTIN W. POND, OF ELYRIA, OHIO.

IMPROVED HARNESS-=BUGKLE.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 36,235, dated August19, 1862.

.To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, MARTIN W. POND, of Elyria, Lorain county, Ohio, haveinvented a new and Improved Buckle for Coupling Leather; and I do herebydeclare that the following is a full and exact description thereof,reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the figures ofreference marked thereon.

The nature of my invention consists in using an eccentric clamp incombination with a straighttongue, thestrap passing between two bars andthe clamp in such a manner thatthe clamp and tongue hold it firmly, Thetighter the strap or trace is drawn the firmer it is held by the clampand bar, yet so'distributing the pressure that the leather is notinjured or deadened at any point.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willproceed to describe its construction and operation.

I construct my buckle in general appearance something like the commonbuckle for leather; but instead of using a round tongue passingobliquely through the strap, I use a straight palate-tongue passingthrough at right angles, and instead of the purchase of the strap beingover a short fulcrum and all at one point, I, in fact, have twofulcrums, thereby dividing and distributing the purchase; butto be moreparticular I would say I construct my buckle with the sidesthrown outabout an inch from the plane of the buckle, (see figures 1 1,) to whichis hinged at each side(see figures 2 2) the clamp and tongue. (Seefigures 3 4.)

One inch or more from and on each side of 1 1, I have oval-shapedcross-bars, (see figures 5 6,) over which and under clamp 3 passes thestrap to be fastened. It will be seen that as the trace is pulled ortightened it comes directly in contact with the short arm of the leverof the eccentric clamp 3and over bar 5, by which purchase the long armof the clamp is forced against the trace as it passes over forward bar,6, where I obtain a press ure which secures a friction confined to nopoint exclusively, but distributed over the whole face of the plane ofthe clamp and of the bars, which relieves the tongue of at leastthree-fourths of the usual strain it has to sustain in the commontongued buckle. To change the trace it is necessary only to push itforward at a point immediately behind the buckle, at once relieving theclamp and throwing the tongue out of its place, which reverses the clampand completely liberates the trace, so that it can be changed withoutbeing removed from the loops on hame-tug, which is a matter-of greatconvenience in changing heavy traces.

It will alsobe noticed that while other buckles pass the trace bya shortcrook under the fulcrum, Ipass it bya long curveover the fulcrum,thereby leaving no buckleworn places exposed to sight when the trace ischanged.

A loose-tongue can be hinged upon the hame-tug bar and allowed to fallupon the end of the long arm of the clamp; but this I consider tooinconvenient and unnecessary.

In all buckles heretofore used with either straight or oblique tonguesthe strain comes all at one point, and that the weakest in the wholetrace, because of the great and direct strain on the straight tonguewhen that is used, and when the oblique tongue is used the short crookand strain on the under side of the trace, in connection with theconstant wear against a thin bar out-he upper side, necessarily requiresa large amount of leather to give strength at this point, making itclumsy and expensive, and even then I think at least ninety per cent. ofthe breakage of traces g is at this point. This trouble is intended tobe obviated by my buckle.

I do not claim a fixed or rigid tongue or clamp, as they have both beenheretofore used; but

I do claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent- As an improvedarticle of manufacture, a buckle having its outside frame thrown out,figures 1 1, with three cross-bars and an eccentric clamp, 3, hinged andarranged as herein described.

M. W. POND.

\Vitnesses:

HENRY B. WEsT, KILBURN H. STONE.

